LSU student Madison Brooks once worked at bar where she met alleged rapists – but was let go in summer

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Louisiana State University student Madison Brooks is reported to have once worked at the bar where she met the four men accused of raping her.

The men are alleged to have abandoned Ms Brooks, 19, on a dark road, where she was struck by a rideshare vehicle and killed.

On the evening of January 14, Ms Brooks was at Reggie’s Bar in Baton Rouge, where she reportedly encountered the men accused of raping her.

Ms Brooks was sexually assaulted by the suspects in a car before she was dropped along the road in the early hours of January 15 where she was struck by a car, investigators allege. Ms Brooks died after being taken to a hospital.

Kaivon Deondre Washington, 18, and a 17-year-old male, unnamed because he’s a minor, have been charged with rape in the third degree.

Everette Lee, 28, Mr Washington’s uncle, and Casen Carver, 18, have been charged with principal to rape and were released on bond on Wednesday.

Kris Perret, an attorney for Reggie’s Bar, said in a statement that Ms Brooks worked at the bar for a month, between 11 June and 11 July last year, as a “door girl” applying “wristbands to patrons”.

“She was terminated on or about July 11, 2022 after engaging in an altercation with another female employee,” Mr Perret said.

“With regards to the current temporary suspension of Reggie’s license, the owners of Reggie’s will continue to cooperate with state and local authorities, as we have done since their first request for assistance in their investigations of this incident,” he added. “We look forward to meeting with State ATC and East Baton Rouge ABC officials as soon as possible to address their concerns and to insure they have all of the complete and accurate facts and all information they require to complete their investigation.”

The Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control suspended the bar’s liquor license on Tuesday because of “the seriousness of the allegations and the potential threat to public safety” following the revelations in the case, The Advocate reported.

Agency commissioner Ernest Legier said the suspension would be in place pending a hearing in February.

The president of STAR, a group that “provides supportive services to survivors to reduce their experience of trauma,” according to its site, told The Advocate that “alcohol did not cause her rape or her death”.

“The perpetrators caused her rape, which led to her being in a place that ultimately led to her death,” Morgan Lamandre added.

LSU President William Tate said in a statement earlier this week that Ms Brooks “should not have been taken from us in this way,” adding that “what happened to her was evil, and our legal system will parcel out justice”.

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